A NORTH Herefordshire village has been connected to fibre broadband.

And the news has been particularly welcomed by one resident who has been a long-standing Fastershire broadband champion.

David Rolfe first became involved in the project in 2011 when representatives from Herefordshire Council went to Yarpole Village Hall to talk about the need for fast broadband in the rural parts of the county.

It was then that Mr Rolfe stepped forward to be the Broadband Champion for Luston, a village just outside Leominster.

He has been involved ever since and has campaigned to bring faster broadband to the village as he knows being digitally connected is important for businesses and residents, especially in rural areas where access to services can be a challenge.

He said: "I was really pleased to know the council and the government were committed to bringing faster broadband to rural Herefordshire, and in particular my village of Luston.

"The BT cabinet is close to my house so I have been able to keep an eye on progress. There seemed a lot involved for the cabinet to be fibre connected, but I was delighted when I could at last order a service.

"It is a remarkable achievement, especially as many residents will now discover that their broadband download speed is up to 30 times faster than it was previously."

Mr Rolfe has been active in updating the parish council and local residents, including letting many of his neighbours know that they can now connect to fibre.

Councillor Graham Powell, the council’s cabinet member who leads on broadband, said: "In 2011 no one was able to order a fibre service, now around 74 per cent of the county can order superfast broadband.

"It is with the support of people like David that we can spread the word that fibre can now be accessed by thousands of premises in Herefordshire.

"We know there is more to do and will be looking at a second stage early next year to reach further into rural areas.

"This means we will have a digitally connected county to rival other parts of the country."

To find out if you can order a fibre service visit fastershire.com using your telephone number or post code to check availability in your area.